Marine battalion team members honored

By Bong Garcia

Sun Star, Thursday, September 1, 2011

THE Philippine Navy has accorded honors to officers and men of the Marine Battalion Landing Team-4 (MBLT-4) for their accomplishments in combat operations that led to the neutralization of some noted terrorists in Mindanao.

Lieutenant Colonel Omar Tonsay said the honors were accorded to the MBLT-4 by Navy chief Vice Admiral Alexander Pama upon the troops' arrival Thursday at the Navy headquarters in Roxas Boulevard, Manila.

The MBLT-4, composed of 19 officers and 424 enlisted personnel, arrived Thursday in Manila for retraining after 10 years of being assigned in Mindanao, Tonsay said.

He said the most noteworthy among the MBLT-4's achievements is the neutralization of Abu Sayyaf bandit leader Albader Parad on February 21, 2010 and five of his comrades, as well as the recovery of five high-powered firearms and ammunition.

Tonsay said the MBLT-4 also successfully raided a two-hectare marijuana plantation in Barangay Patao, Maimbung, Sulu and another 1.5 hectare in nearby Barangay Binuang, Talipao in the same province, with an estimated total market value of P32 million on May 22 and June 26, 2008, respectively.

He said Pama also lauded the MBLT-4 troops for their major operations against secessionist groups in different parts of Mindanao and the team's success in winning the trust and confidence of the populace in the various areas they were deployed.

Pama likewise acknowledged the members of the MBLT-4 who have fallen in the line of duty and who have lived up to the standard of a true Marine, "ever committed to the ideals of the Philippine Marine Corps and the Navy."

Tonsay said the MBLT-4's activities in its area of responsibility were not confined to combat operations alone, but were extended to various humanitarian projects that benefited local residents such as construction of road networks, water systems and school buildings.

He said the MBLT-4 also taught local residents to engage in seaweeds farming, thus helping alleviate the flight of living of people they meet in their areas of operation.

"These missions highlight the Navy's Fleet-Marine operations where Sailors and Marines work in tandem in support of the government's peace and development efforts," Tonsay added.

www.sunstar.com.ph

Aquino commissions new Phl warship today

By Aurea Calica

Philippine Star, Tuesday, August 23, 2011

President Aquino leads today the inspection of the newly-acquired warship BRP Gregorio del Pilar, which is part of the upgrading and modernization efforts of the government on the maritime capabilities of the Armed Forces of the Philippines(AFP).

Aquino will be welcomed at Pier 13 in South Harbor by government officials including Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim, AFP chief Lt. Gen. Eduardo Oban Jr., Philippine Navy Flag Officer in Command Vice Admiral Alexander Pama, and PF15 Commanding Officer Capt. Alberto Cruz.

Manned by 13 officers and 82 enlisted personnel, BRP Gregorio del Pilar arrived in the country last week after a month-long voyage from the United States. The warship dropped anchor at the Manila Bay yesterday to undergo customs, immigration and quarantine inspection.

The Navy recently acquired the refurbished US Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton (WHEC-715) and commissioned it as BRP Gregorio del Pilar Pacific Fleet 15.

The 378-foot vessel with a crew capacity of 180 is equipped with armament and weapons system, propulsion plant, electrical generation, helicopter hangar and flight deck, among others.

It will be deployed to carry out missions for drug interdiction, law enforcement, search and rescue operations, defense readiness and migrant interdiction. It will also perform tasks in protecting the country’s natural gas and oil exploration projects off Palawan amid reported incursions in the West Philippine Sea.

Defense department spokesman Col. Hernando Iriberri said Aquino’s presence during the event signifies the government’s seriousness in modernizing the military.

“It shows the commitment of the government to improve the capability of the AFP to perform its constitutional mandate as protector of our people and guardian of our territory,” Iriberri said.

He said the arrival of the BRP Gregorio del Pilar “is a step forward toward the realization of the thrust to modernize the AFP.”

The ship is the Navy’s first Hamilton-class cutter and is its largest vessel. – With Alexis Romero

www.philstar.com

Hamilton icon of AFP’s capability upgrade

By William Depasupil
The Manila Times, Monday, August 22, 2011

THE Philippine Navy’s largest and most modern ship, the Hamilton class US Coast Guard cutter, now known as the BRP (Barko ng Republika ng Pilipinas) Gregorio del Pilar, symbolizes the country’s resolve and determination to defend its territorial integrity, according to Navy flag-officer in command Vice Admiral Alexander Pama.

Pama disclosed Sunday that the 3,390-ton warship is now anchored at the Manila Bay after a 45-day journey from Coast Guard island in Alameda, San Francisco, California.

“This will be an icon to the revival of the capability upgrade of our Armed Forces,” he said. “This is the symbol of our resolve and determination to protect what is ours.”

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff, Gen. Eduardo Oban Jr., earlier said that the cutter would be used for multi-mission operations such as search and rescue, and maritime security patrols, particularly in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) to protect the country’s interests that include the Malampaya Gas Project in the waters of Palawan near the dispute Spratly group of islands.

The ship, even at 46 years old, is now the biggest and most modern in the Philippine Navy’s inventory. It was launched on December 18, 1965, commissioned to the US Coast Guard March 18, 1967 and decom-missioned on March 28, 2011.

It was acquired by the Philippine government at a transfer cost of P450 million, minus the air surface search radar, close-in weapons system and secondary 25-mm gun system.

But Pama said that even if the Hamilton is already old, it is still well-maintained and capable of enduring high weather that can make it sustain longer patrolling at sea.

“It’s not a question of age but the capability of the ship. One of our problems before is our lack of patrol ship that could endure high weather and can sustain longer patrolling at sea,” he said.

“This ship has proven its capability of crossing the Pacific Ocean and I think there’s no other place in the Philippines that has bigger waves [than the Pacific Ocean],” Pama added.

According to him, the ship is now going through the usual customs, immigration and quarantine inspection before it would be dry-docked for at least a month for repainting from white to the Navy’s official gray color. Some minor repairs and fitting of additional facilities and equipment will also be done.

Pama said that the ship has not been formally commissioned yet to the Navy and its name BRP Gregorio del Pilar is not yet final pending approval from the Office of the President.

“The name BRP Gregorio del Pilar is only a provisional name. It still needs to pass through proper procedure until it is approved by the President. It is only then that it can be commissioned and given its final name,” Pama added referring to President Benigno Aquino 3rd.

www.manilatimes.net

‘BRP Gregorio del Pilar’ makes port

By Victor Reyes
Malaya, Monday, August 22, 2011

THE Navy’s largest and newly acquired ship arrived from the United States yesterday morning and will be formally welcomed by President Aquino tomorrow.

Navy chief Vice Adm. Alexander Pama boarded the ship at the Manila Bay anchorage and had lunch (boodle fight) with the 95 officers and men, led by Capt. Alberto Cruz, who sailed the Hamilton cutter from San Francisco on July 18.

Pama said the ship had to undergo "customs, quarantine and immigration" inspection as part of procedures for ships coming from abroad.

After the arrival ceremony on Tuesday, the ship to be named BRP Gregorio del Pilar will undergo dry-docking and repainting. Its color will be changed from white to gray which is the official color of the Navy.

The ship will be deployed at the West Philippine Sea where the country has a vast maritime interest to protect.

The 44-year-old ship was acquired from the US Coast Guard through the US Excess Defense Articles program.

President Aquino, accompanied by Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, will lead the formal welcome ceremony for the ship and its crew at the South Harbor. Guests will have the chance to tour the ship.

Pama said the ship will be an "icon to the revival of the capability upgrade of the Philippine Navy."

"This will be a symbol of our seriousness (in upgrading the Navy capability). Because we are a maritime nation, this will jumpstart our revival of our Navy’s capability," he also said.

www.malaya.com.ph

Navy gets new Hamilton-class ship, says it will revive defense capability

By Alexis Romero
Philippine Star, Monday, August 22, 2011

MANILA, Philippines - The newly acquired Hamilton-class ship from the US symbolizes the revival of the military’s defense capabilities, the Navy said yesterday.

“We regard this (newly acquired ship) as an icon of the revival of the capability upgrade of the armed forces. This symbolizes our seriousness (to upgrade our military),” Navy chief Vice Adm. Alexander Pama told radio station dzBB in Filipino.

“This (ship) would start the revival and the enhancement of the capabilities of the armed forces,” he said.

Pama said upgrading the country’s naval assets is important given that the Philippines is a maritime nation. He said the ship, which has been renamed BRP Gregorio del Pilar, would allow them to sail through huge waves.

“One of our weaknesses is the lack of vessels that could withstand a rough environment caused by huge waves. We can now do that through this ship. It symbolizes the government’s presence and is in line with efforts to protect our maritime resources,” Pama said.

The Hamilton-class ship arrived in Philippine territory last Aug. 17 after almost a month of voyage from California.

A total of 95 Navy personnel manned the ship, which arrived in Manila Bay yesterday. The ship underwent customs and immigration quarantine and inspection in line with the existing regulations on vessels from other countries.

President Aquino will lead the arrival ceremonies for the ship tomorrow at the Pier 13 in South Harbor, Manila.

www.philstar.com

Sink or Swim with Navy

By Jullie Yap Daza

Manila Bulletin, Tuesday, August 16, 2011

MANILA, Philippines — Repeat 110 times: “We are a maritime nation.”

Now you’re in the good graces of the Philippine Navy chief, Vice Admiral Alexander Pama. (It’s vice because his equivalent in the Army is a four-star, not five-star, general.)

When he had lunch at Sofitel with “Bulong Pulungan” last week, the Admiral was bent on getting his mantra across, that if you don’t buy it hook, line, and sinker, then “we will never have the strong and credible navy” that this maritime nation deserves.

The Navy serves 67 percent of the population who live in coastal areas, in a country with a coastline longer than the USA’s, where in the midst of a grouping of 7,107 islands is the center of the center of marine biodiversity and fishing is a major source of livelihood.

Our waters are a rich source of marine life, yet they are also the graveyard of thousands of boat passengers who have gone down to the bottom of the sea.

What a shame that our Navy has 66 ships and boats, of which only 33 are in ship-shape condition, alas. What can we islanders and the Admiral or his successors do but sink or swim with the Navy?

Coming soon, BRP Gregorio del Pilar, a $10-million, 30-year-old “new” Hamilton cutter, so “big and fast” she “can be deployed anywhere.” (More on Thursday)

www.mb.com.ph

Pama-steering the PH Navy Through Rough Seas

Yahoo, Saturday, August 13, 2011

"A morning Prayer: Open my heart so I can see the truth around me, When I am shown anger, Help me see the hurt that sparked it. When I am shown arrogance, let me see insecurity. When I am shown aggression, Help me recognize the fear beneath it. And when I am confronted with hate, Give me the strength and wisdom to respond with love. Amen."

Chito Bertol, Manila Seedling Bank Foundation

"An officer and a gentleman..."

MANILA, Philippines - That sums up my and the "Bulong Pulungan sa Sofitel" crowd's impression of Vice Admiral Alexander P. Pama, AFP, the Flag Officer-in-Command of the Philippine Navy when he was our guest at our weekly forum.

Looking trim and fit in his light brown daily uniform ("We wear white to gala affairs"), he answered all questions forthrightly and injected his own witty humor which put everyone at ease. There to break bread with us too was his lovely and brainy "commander-in-chief," his banker wife, Carlette, who works at the PNB, just a few minutes away from the PN headquarters on Roxas Boulevard.

From her we learned that they are both from Iloilo and in fact met at the UP campus there in their freshman year. They separated ways when he entered the PMA in Baguio and she continued her studies in UP Diliman. Their paths crossed again and they eventually married. They now have two boys, both students at the De La Salle University.

Alex has an M. A. in Business Administration from Ateneo while Carlette also has her masters from UP. His well-rounded naval career include commanding six navy vessels and other sea commands, holding various shore assignments in the headquarters and is concurrently the Commander of the naval Intelligence Security Force. He was also Superintendent of the Naval School Center, Naval Education and Training Command and in the Naval Operational Command as Commander, Naval Forces Western Mindanao and concurrently Commander, Joint Task Force "Trillium" (Zamboanga -Basilan). His stint at the headquarters of the AFP took him through intelligence and planning and at the DND, he was both the senior military assistant and chief of staff to the secretary.

The reality of the Philippines being a maritime nation is not fully appreciated by our people, Pama noted. Even some of our national leaders tend to overlook the facts-the Philippines is an archipelago made up of some 7,100 islands bounded by the Pacific Ocean, the West Philippine Sea, and the Celebes Sea. We are also in the middle of major international navigation routes with the Coral Triangle within our waters which is why we are blessed by being the "center of the center of marine biodiversity," Pama reminded us. And we thought sailors weren't knowledgeable and dedicated environmentalists!

Being a maritime nation, we have unique challenges-sea piracy, poaching, repatriating stranded OFWs from overseas, kidnapping, trafficking of narcotics, arms, explosives, even people! And now of course, the hunt for oil deposits and China's interest in the disputed Spratlys. The Navy has been tasked to secure offshore oil drilling explorations, and it maintains personnel in the Spratlys. Not to worry, the sighting Marines, who are also all within the PM Command are there also to safeguard this maritime nation, assured Pama.

Developing and implementing a responsive naval system with the limited resources available to the Navy is not lost on Pama. He realizes that equipment vital to securing our patrimony is sorely lacking, but he is certain that with P-Noy's "walangwang- wang" governance, the Navy will be able to reach its goal of being credible and strong.

"Why, this month alone, the navy will be welcoming the newest and biggest PN vessel, a Hamilton-class vessel acquired from the United States.

It has been re-named BRP Gregorio del Pilar, and 90 men trained in a California naval base to man it." Pama sounded euphoric about this newest addition to the navy's tiny fleet of ships and vessels.

He recounted how overwhelmed he was with the enthusiasm of the Fil-Am community in the American naval base from where the Hamilton sailed to the Philippines. That kind of support for the Navy only makes him more resolute in doing his responsibility in steering the "ship" of the PN where it should be going.

It was a very educational and thought-provoking session, thank you, V. Admiral Pama and your officers, Capt. Danilo Rodelas, Capt. Giovanni Carlo Bacordo and Col. Omar Tonsay! And thank you too to Sofitel's Executive Chef, Marko Rankel for that delicious buffet you prepared for our special guest on our Bulong "budget!"

So, "Sail on" Philippine Navy and V.Admiral Pama! We stakeholders wish you success and you have our support!

Meanwhile, if there is any good that has come from the "blasphemous" art work of one Mideo Cruz and exhibited at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (until it was closed down due to P-Noy's urgings and the public indignation) it is the closing of ranks among us Catholics and other denominations as well.

The outrage against the desecration of the symbols of the faith-Jesus Christ, Mary, the Crucifix-augurs well for the Catholic Church in this country. It showed us that we have not been desensitized by some scandals in our Church and that we will defend it when it is attacked.

I talked to Raul Sunico a week after the first storms loomed over the exhibit and he was of the opinion that it was "sanctioned" by UST since Cruz is from that institution. Turns out, UST, in a statement, denied any kind of approval of the exhibit and that Cruz is an undergraduate.

Raul was already bothered about the exhibit but he could not unilaterally decide. There was to be a discussion on it in the coming days and the board appeared to be in favor of allowing the exhibit to continue for the sake of freedom of artistic expression.

Would the President have intervened if the offending art exhibit was held in a private gallery? Would we have reacted with the same passion? I would guess not. The fact that the CCP is funded by our taxes and expected to showcase the best of Philippine art, culture and theatre made all the difference.

Thank you, Mr. President, for reminding the CCP board of their responsibilities.

ph.news.yahoo.com

On board the BRP Gregorio del Pilar

By Rodel Rodis

Inquirer, Wednesday, July 20, 2011

The Philippines has only a WW II vintage frigate, the Rajah Humabon, to use right now to defend the country against an attack from China’s formidable armada which includes an aircraft carrier, 21 destroyers, 68 submarines, 42 modern frigates and 760 ships. But help is on the way. In three weeks, the 378-foot Hamilton-class cutter BRP Gregorio Del Pilar will arrive in the Philippines where it will be dispatched to the Kalayaan Island Group of the Spratly Islands to defend this “Tirad Pass” from foreign invaders.

Imagine the Philippine David with its cutter slingshot against the China Goliath.

The BRP Gregorio del Pilar, the biggest ship ever to be acquired by the Philippine Navy, will be manned by a full complement of 180 officers and crew, 95 of whom were recently trained in the San Francisco Bay Area at Coast Guard Island in Alameda.

Before it was purchased by the Philippine government from the US for $13 million this May, the cutter, which was built in 1968, was largely used by the US Coast Guard for drug and migrant interdiction, law enforcement and defense readiness. As a multi-mission Surface Combatant Ship (SCS), the first gas-turbine jet engine-powered vessel in its fleet, the Philippine Navy plans to deploy it for operations in the West Philippine Sea.

On the eve of the ship’s departure for the Philippines from its Alameda base this July 17, I attended a Mass officiated on the ship by Fr. Mark Reburiano. Before Holy Communion was served, Philippine Navy Flag Officer in Command Vice Admiral Alexander Pama spoke to thank the members of the Filipino American community.

“You warmly welcomed them in your homes, you fed them and you made them feel at home” he said. “We want you all to be proud of our Philippine Navy which represents not only the Filipino people but Filipinos everywhere.”

“We may face insurmountable odds when we return to the Philippines,” he added, “but at the end of the day, it is people who are the decisive factors in any conflict and I want you all to know that we have people of outstanding quality in our navy.”

After the Mass, we joined the officers and crew at the ship’s mess hall for their final dinner in the United States. We watched the video of the May 13, 2011 turnover ceremonies attended by Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia, Jr. and US Coast Guard Vice Admiral Manson K. Brown.

The highlight of the turnover rites was the departure of the US Coast Guard crew from the ship as the US flag was lowered and the raising of the Philippine flag on the ship as 21 members of the Philippine Navy, who had been in training in the US since February 25, 2011, boarded the ship to take command.

On the following day, 74 additional members of the Philippine Navy arrived to undergo training on the Philippine Navy’s newest ship.

The BRP Gregorio Del Pilar crew includes three female officers: Dr. Joanne Cornista, the Chief Medical officer; Ensign Lolit Gonzales; and Lt. Junior Grade Andrelee Mojica, the Damage Control Officer who happens to be the first female valedictorian of the Philippine Military Academy (Class of 2007).

At the helm of the BRP Gregorio del Pilar is Navy Captain Alberto Cruz, (PMA Class of 1988) who along with his Executive Officer, Navy Commander Reynaldo Lopez (PMA Class of 1992) arrived in Alameda on February 25, 2011 together with a specially selected crew of 19 other officers and enlisted men/engineers (the “crème de la crème”) of the Philippine Navy.

They underwent intensive hands-on training on board the USCGC Boutwell, the sister ship of the USCGC Hamilton, for two months traveling to Colombia, Ecuador and El Salvador to interdict drug smugglers. With no access to the telephone or the Internet, the crew later told reporter Gemma Nemenzo, they felt like “the lost command”. Worse torture for some of them—the steady diet of potatoes, meat, potatoes and more potatoes. No rice.

At our dinner at the Officers’ Mess Hall on July 17, I sat down with Vice-Admiral Pama who had flown in from Manila just the day before to formally issue the orders to Capt. Cruz. He candidly expressed relief that the Philippine Navy was finally getting attention from the national government after years of neglect.

We recalled Pres. Noynoy Aquino’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 26, 2010 when he said: “We have 36,000 nautical miles of shoreline, but we only have 32 boats. These boats are as old as the time of (US General Douglas) MacArthur.”

While Pres. PNoy Aquino has been hammered by his critics for lack of accomplishments during his first year in office, PNoy quietly found the government funds to purchase the Hamilton cutter from the US government and is negotiating to acquire even more de-commissioned cutters.

Vice-Admiral Pama shared that the decision to name the BRP Gregorio Del Pilar was no fluke. Philippine Navy officers were keenly aware of the heroic exploits of the “Boy General” who led his Filipino soldiers to victory in the Battle of Quingua on April 23, 1899 against the US forces of Col. John Stotsenburg. With the US forces breathing down on Philippine President Emilo Aguinaldo’s trail, Gen. Del Pilar and 60 Filipino soldiers defended Tirad Pass for five hours against the vastly superior 33rd Infantry Regiment led by Gen. Peyton March before he and his men were killed by the foreign invaders.

On Monday, July 18, we attended the send-off ceremonies at Alameda as Vice Admiral Pama officially issued the order to Capt. Cruz to depart for the Philippines. I then joined the Filipino-American community in shaking the hands of each of the 95 officers and crew of the BRP del Pilar to wish them each Godspeed. As I shook their hands and looked in their eyes, I worried that they may be the first casualties of a war with China over the Spratlys.

The Filipino American community has scheduled a national Day of Prayer for Peace in the Spratlys for Sunday, August 21, the 28th anniversary of Ninoy Aquino’s assassination, to pray for the peaceful and just resolution of our territorial conflict with China and for the protection and safety of the brave men and women of the BRP Gregorio Del Pilar.

globalnation.inquirer.net

Navy’s fastest ship sails to new homeport

By Gemma Nemenzo

NewsBreak, Wednesday, July 20, 2011

CALIFORNIA—“Requesting permission, sir, to carry out the mission to return to the Philippines.”

As the BRP Gregorio del Pilar leaves the US Coast Guard dock in Alameda, California, the crew unfurls a banner.

Philippine Navy Captain Alberto Cruz uttered these all-important words softly, almost privately—away from the chatter of supporters and onlookers—to the Flag Officer in Command (FOIC) of the Navy, Vice Admiral Alexander Pama, at around 1530 hours on July 18 in Alameda, California.

With permission granted, Cruz then boarded the BRP Gregorio del Pilar to steer the new crown jewel of the Philippine Navy on her journey of approximately a month to her new homeport.

Earlier, the rituals of departure that naval tradition calls for whenever a ship is deployed on an important mission were conducted by the ship’s 95-person crew, leaving the crowd of about a hundred supporters tearful.

The emotion of the moment was not lost on the ex-Philippine Navy officers present (all of them alumni of the Philippine Military Academy, where Pama, Cruz and the other top officers of the BRP GdP also graduated from) as they remembered their years aboard the rickety ships of the Navy and watched with a large amount of pride this big new ship the likes of which they could only dream about when they were in active service.

It took more than an hour before the former Hamilton class cutter was actually able to leave port. A minor propeller problem had to be repaired before the U.S. Coast Guard tugboat could steer it out of the dock. When she finally sailed, the dwindled crowd of wellwishers cheered and waved tiny Philippine flags as the crew unfurled a hastily made banner that said, “Maraming salamat sa inyong lahat.”

Pama, recording the departure on both his cell phone and tablet computer, was visibly proud as he watched the 92 men and three women under his command sail away. Earlier, in a moment of nostalgia for his days aboard ship, he had wished that he was on board with them.

Fastest, biggest

The BRP Gregorio del Pilar is the first of three major vessels the Philippine Navy will acquire “hopefully by the end of the year,” according to Pama.

Funding for the acquisitions—part of the military modernization plans of the Aquino administration—will come from the Department of Energy’s six billion-peso allotment for oil exploration and coastal protection.

It will not be the first time this particular ship – the WHEC-715 – will dock in the Philippines.

On her initial deployment in 1969, she sailed from Panama to Subic Naval Base, where she docked for four days before proceeding to South Vietnam to carry out the mission of preventing weapons smuggling from North Vietnam at the height of the war.

After her wartime mission, the 715 was used by the US Coast Guard for anti-drug smuggling duties and rescue operations in various countries until her final decommissioning last March.

The Philippine government bought the Hamilton class cutter early this year for approximately US$13 million (Php450 million) under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program.

Once the largest ship of the American Coast Guard, this is the first gas-turbine jet engine-powered vessel in the Philippine Navy fleet, making it the fastest, biggest and most powerful among the service’s aging inventory.

She is described as “a high endurance cutter with close-in weapons system” and features a helicopter flight deck with a retractable hangar, with capabilities for rescue operations and maritime law enforcement.

At the helm of the BRP Gregorio del Pilar is Navy Captain Alberto Cruz, a graduate of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Class of ’88.

Elite Crew

Philippine Navy Captain Alberto Cruz, the author, and Vice Admiral Alex Pama. After this photo was napped, Cruz turned to Pama to ask permission to sail.

Not an easy task considering that this is the first time he and his crew will traverse this lengthy route, and the first time they will navigate this ship with her unfamiliar technology for an extended period in the open sea without the assistance and know-how of its former American crew.

An amiable, soft-spoken guy whose easy-going style belies years of experience in commanding naval ships and people, his all-important mission is to deliver this very valuable vessel across the Pacific to the Philippine waters safe and intact.

To top it all, they will be arriving in the Philippines right smack into typhoon season.

But if there’s any group up to the challenge, it’s this crew of naval officers and sailors who have been handpicked by the Philippine Fleet Command (a special committee of top naval officials) based on their exemplary service and experience.

“It’s safe to say that this crew, from the Commanding Officer down to the lowest ranking enlisted man, is the ‘crème de la crème’ of the Philippine Navy,” retired Philippine Navy Captain Archie Almario says.

“You don’t send someone with a checkered service record to an international mission as important as this. This [assignment] is both a recognition of their talents and a reward for their good work.”

Cruz and the seven other naval officers and 13 enlisted men/engineers that formed the initial group that trained with the Hamilton command were assigned in various naval ships stationed in different areas of the archipelago when they got the call from their superiors last January. Report to [the Philippine Navy headquarters] Manila for a new assignment was the missive. There they were told of the government’s acquisition and the role they would play in the process.

As commanding officer, Cruz had his complete crew already chosen for him. Among the seven are the executive officer Navy Commander Reynaldo Lopez (PMA Class 1992) and Lieutenant Junior Grade Andrelee Mojica (the valedictorian of PMA Class of 2007), the damage control officer, who is one of three women officers on the ship.

‘Lost command’

The first weeks of their new assignment were a whirlwind of activities for the chosen 21.

All underwent rigorous physical exams and intensive neuro-psychiatric evaluations (NPE), the latter crucial in determining whether each person had the mental and psychological capacity to withstand the challenge of being away from their families for an indeterminate period, the stability to face up to the pressure-cooker demands of a new environment in a different country, and the rigor to learn new technologies and procedures within a relatively short period of time.

Cruz credits the NPE evaluation for the relatively problem-free dynamic that currently governs the quality of interaction among the ship’s crew. “We had met each other before [this mission], but only casually,” the commanding officer says. “But somehow we bonded immediately.”

On February 25 this year, the group landed in San Francisco and were immediately whisked to Alameda (about 20 minutes away) to board the USCGC Boutwell, the sister ship of the Hamilton, for hands-on training.

What they didn’t anticipate was that they would be cut off from all communications with the outside world for two full months as the Boutwell crew carried out a highly classified US Coast Guard anti-drug smuggling operation that brought the vessel to as far as Ecuador and El Salvador.

With no telephone or Internet access, the Filipino navymen on board joked among themselves that they had become a “lost command.” Worse, they had to endure meals without rice for weeks on end, which as we know, is tantamount to torture for Filipinos from the Philippines.

“We had salad, potatoes, meat, potatoes and potatoes,” one of them remarked. No wonder they had to go through the NPEs. They were only allowed to check in with their families when the tsunami in Japan happened.

A US Coast Guard tugboat begins to steer the BRP Gregorio del Pilar out of US waters to proceed to the Philippines.

When the Boutwell returned to San Diego, the Hamilton cutter was ready to sail for Alameda for the formal turnover to the Philippine government. Cruz and his crew were given permission to ride with the ship to her new destination, but as passengers, since training on the actual vessel (already named Ex Hamilton after its decommissioning) would start only after the May 13 ceremony.

Gregorio del Pilar

With the Hamilton rechristened Gregorio del Pilar, Cruz took command of the vessel.

The rest of the crew were flown in from the Philippines to work alongside their American counterparts. By then, the original 21 have had enough experience with gas turbine engine technology to be confident that they would be able to get the ship to sail.

For a journey across the Pacific, however, more weeks of intense training were required.

Finally, in early July, they did a four-day run at sea along the coast of California for a test of the crew’s capabilities and the ship’s sea-worthiness. After that, the American trainors de-boarded and the Filipino naval officers and men were on their own.

As soon as she reaches her new homeport, the BRP Gregorio del Pilar will undergo some refurbishing before deployment to the Spratlys.

When confronted with the usual saber-rattling by powerful nations during territorial disputes, the Philippines now has a gleaming big saber to brandish in return.—Newsbreak

www.newsbreak.ph